If you’re a forefoot runner wrestling with shin splints, you may be making initial ground-contact way too high up on your toes coupled with not letting your heel drop down to the ground. The trouble with this landing configuration during running is that for one, it keeps pressure impulse peaks heavily concentrated and localized to the forefoot. Why? Because by not letting the heel drop down after touchdown, the center of pressure cannot evenly dissipate over a larger area of the foot. For another, research has linked this kind of forefoot pressure build-up to increases in workloads on the tibia (shin) as the shins now have to work harder in stabilizing ankle moments and absorbing greater impact loads caused by the abrupt increases in forefoot pressure. Read more here about what a proper, shin pain-free forefoot strike should look like in running.
